Working with IT to figure out what is going on…
We were not this precise this morning, but put out over 2000 flags at our local cemetery. This is just one little section…
Looks like I can blog again… Yay!!!
Memorial Day is for those who never made it out of their uniform. The blank check they wrote for their lives was cashed.
Hand Salute. Ready, Two!
We are losing 17 veterans a day to suicide, that IS a drop from the previous years, but still horrific…
If you know a vet with problems, talk to him/her and get them some help!
Almost all of our WWII vets are gone, along with many Korea and Vietnam vets.
He was getting old and paunchy, and his hair was falling fast; and he sat around the post home, telling stories of the past. Of a war that he had fought in the deeds that he had done; sharing exploits with his buddies, all were heroes, everyone. And though sometimes to his neighbors, his tales became a joke, all his comrades listened, for they know whereof he spoke. But, we’ll hear his tales no longer, of ol’ Bob has passed away, and the world’s a little poorer, for a Veteran died today.
No, he won’t be mourned by many, just his children and his wife, for Bob lived a plain and ordinary sort of life. He held a job, raised a and quietly went his way, and the world won’t note his passing, ‘tho a Veteran died today.
See, when politicians leave this earth, their bodies lie in state, while thousands note their passing, and proclaim that they were great. Their life stories are grandly told, from the time they were young, but the passing of a Veteran goes unnoticed, and unsung.
Is the greatest contribution to the welfare of our land, some jerk who breaks his promises and cons his fellow man? Or the ordinary person, who in times of war and strife, goes off to serve this Country and offers up his life?
Now, the politician’s salary and the style in which he lives, are sometimes disproportionate to the services he gives. While the ordinary Veteran who offered up his all, is paid off with a medal and, perhaps, a pension small. It’s so easy to forget them, for it was so long ago, that our Bobs, Jims and Larrys went to battle, that we know. It was not the politicians, with their compromise and ploys, who won for us the freedom that our Nation now enjoys. Should you find yourself in danger, with an enemy at hand, would you really want some “cop out” with his wishy-washy stand? Or, would you want a Veteran who swore he would defend GOD, COUNTRY, FAMILY, and would fight until the end.
Yes, he was just a common Veteran and his ranks are growing thin, but his presence still remind us, we may need his kind again. For when foreigners are in trouble, then the Military’s part, is to clean up all the troubles that the politicians start.
So, if we cannot do him honor, while he’s here to hear the praise, then at least let’s pay him homage at the ending of his days. Perhaps a simple headline in the paper that might say.
OUR COUNTRY IS IN MOURNING FOR A VETERAN DIED TODAY.
If you know a vet with problems, talk to him/her and get them some help!
Almost all of our WWII vets are gone, along with many Korea and Vietnam vets.
He was getting old and paunchy, and his hair was falling fast; and he sat around the post home, telling stories of the past. Of a war that he had fought in the deeds that he had done; sharing exploits with his buddies, all were heroes, everyone. And though sometimes to his neighbors, his tales became a joke, all his comrades listened, for they know whereof he spoke. But, we’ll hear his tales no longer, of ol’ Bob has passed away, and the world’s a little poorer, for a Veteran died today.
No, he won’t be mourned by many, just his children and his wife, for Bob lived a plain and ordinary sort of life. He held a job, raised a and quietly went his way, and the world won’t note his passing, ‘tho a Veteran died today.
See, when politicians leave this earth, their bodies lie in state, while thousands note their passing, and proclaim that they were great. Their life stories are grandly told, from the time they were young, but the passing of a Veteran goes unnoticed, and unsung.
Is the greatest contribution to the welfare of our land, some jerk who breaks his promises and cons his fellow man? Or the ordinary person, who in times of war and strife, goes off to serve this Country and offers up his life?
Now, the politician’s salary and the style in which he lives, are sometimes disproportionate to the services he gives. While the ordinary Veteran who offered up his all, is paid off with a medal and, perhaps, a pension small. It’s so easy to forget them, for it was so long ago, that our Bobs, Jims and Larrys went to battle, that we know. It was not the politicians, with their compromise and ploys, who won for us the freedom that our Nation now enjoys. Should you find yourself in danger, with an enemy at hand, would you really want some “cop out” with his wishy-washy stand? Or, would you want a Veteran who swore he would defend GOD, COUNTRY, FAMILY, and would fight until the end.
Yes, he was just a common Veteran and his ranks are growing thin, but his presence still remind us, we may need his kind again. For when foreigners are in trouble, then the Military’s part, is to clean up all the troubles that the politicians start.
So, if we cannot do him honor, while he’s here to hear the praise, then at least let’s pay him homage at the ending of his days. Perhaps a simple headline in the paper that might say.
OUR COUNTRY IS IN MOURNING FOR A VETERAN DIED TODAY.
1. DON’T WISH ANYONE A “HAPPY MEMORIAL DAY”
This is not a holiday like Christmas and this day was not created to bring glee! Despite what the day has transitioned to in American culture, it was established to reflect, honor and remember America’s military fallen.
2. DON’T DISREGARD ITS IMPORTANCE.
Sure enjoy the sales, grill some amazing steaks, and find the perfect mattress on sale, just don’t forget to raise a glass in honor of those servicemen and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice.
3. DON’T FORGET WHY IT EXISTS.
This holiday exists for a reason. Use this day to reflect and honor our fallen heroes who paid the ultimate sacrifice for you!
4. DON’T LET POLITICS KEEP YOU FROM RENDERING RESPECT.
Even if you don’t agree with the idea of war, or the reasons America goes to war, or the policies of a particular president who was the Commander in Chief during a specific war, it doesn’t matter. People have defended the people and interests of America for over 200 years, and your right to disagree with the reasons for war should be separate from your opinion of the troops themselves.
Thank you for your consideration on these ideas.
This is not a holiday like Christmas and this day was not created to bring glee! Despite what the day has transitioned to in American culture, it was established to reflect, honor and remember America’s military fallen.
2. DON’T DISREGARD ITS IMPORTANCE.
Sure enjoy the sales, grill some amazing steaks, and find the perfect mattress on sale, just don’t forget to raise a glass in honor of those servicemen and women who gave the ultimate sacrifice.
3. DON’T FORGET WHY IT EXISTS.
This holiday exists for a reason. Use this day to reflect and honor our fallen heroes who paid the ultimate sacrifice for you!
4. DON’T LET POLITICS KEEP YOU FROM RENDERING RESPECT.
Even if you don’t agree with the idea of war, or the reasons America goes to war, or the policies of a particular president who was the Commander in Chief during a specific war, it doesn’t matter. People have defended the people and interests of America for over 200 years, and your right to disagree with the reasons for war should be separate from your opinion of the troops themselves.
Thank you for your consideration on these ideas.
Currently working with the IT folks to get it fixed and back to blogging.
Just pisses me off!
WASHINGTON — U.S. military commands responsible for North America spent millions of dollars meant for COVID-19 relief on space-related data analytics connected to the Pentagon’s Joint All-Domain Command and Control endeavor as well as on office information technology upgrades, a Pentagon watchdog said.
Full article, HERE from Defense News.
The Air Farce once again is doing the loose cannon thing… To hell with the people that work for them, let’s use that money to make ourselves look better!
And once again there is this great ‘software’ system that is going to magically make everything better and allow everybody to talk to everybody. Link HERE. This was tried ten or fifteen years ago and melted down because the Air Force didn’t want to see Army ‘stuff’ on their screens, while the Army didn’t need to see ‘stuff’ that was 250 miles away. And the Navy needed to be able to ‘silo’ battle groups based on locations around the world rather than sending ‘everything’ to every ship… Untold millions were spent on this program and all for nothing…
And please say a prayer for the 19 children and 2 adults killed by that scumbag down in Uvalde, TX yesterday. Little is known right now about the shooter or anything else, but the left is already dancing in the blood of these dead children and calling for MORE GUN CONTROL!
Biden said,
“As a nation, we have to ask, when in God’s name are we going to stand up to the gun lobby? When in God’s name, will we do what we know in our gut what needs to be done?”
“We have to act. Don’t tell me we can’t have an impact on this carnage,” Biden added.
Harris said,
“Every time a tragedy like this happens, our hearts break and our broken hearts are nothing compared to the broken hearts of those families,” Harris said.
“Enough is enough. As a nation, we have to have the courage to take action and understand the nexus between what makes for reasonable and sensible public policy to ensure something like this never happens again,” Harris said.
How about actually enforcing the laws already on the books??? The Buffalo shooter should never have been allowed to buy a gun IF the rules had been followed and his mental issues identified and put in the system… With Texas, we don’t know what is the truth yet.
The first international shipment of specialty baby formula has arrived in the United States by a military plane, enough for more than a million and a half bottles.
The first flight of “Operation Fly Formula” landed in Indianapolis weighing more than 78, 000 pounds, as part of the Biden administration’s ongoing efforts to address the baby formula shortage.
Full article, HERE from PJ Media.
Interestingly, the product will be distributed to medical offices and pharmacies, but not store shelves. And will support 9000 babies.
9000 out of an estimated 3.2 MILLION babies under one year old… Link HERE to the birth rates from the CDC.
I have a few other questions…
Who is paying for the C-17 flight time? Or is the USAF just having to ‘suck it up’?
What mission(s) are they not flying to do these (like the who got tagged to fly the Afghanistan evac)? And how much flight time is this taking off the airframes? Especially since they started ‘retiring’ C-17s in 2012…
One other question, how did they do the math to come up with 9000 babies? 78,000/9000= 8.67 ish lbs for each baby. Granted it’s been a LONG time since I’ve had to worry about feeding a baby a bottle, but ‘something’ there just doesn’t make sense.
I would really like to hear from somebody that can tell me how that works out.
For future reference purposes…
Not that I’m seeing more and more of this every day… Nope…
We do away with all the nasty petroleum?
There is just a ‘little’ issue with doing this…
If there is no petroleum, there will be an estimated 6000 products that will no longer be available!
Partial list, HERE from Ranken Energy. And more from Canada, HERE.
And a partial list from US DOE-
Adhesive Air mattresses Ammonia Antifreeze Antihistamines Antiseptics Artificial limbs Artificial turf Asphalt Aspirin Awnings Backpacks Balloons Ballpoint pens Bandages Beach umbrellas Boats Cameras Candies and gum Candles Car battery cases Car enamel Cassettes Caulking CDs/computer disks Cell phones Clothes Clothesline Clothing Coffee makers Cold cream Combs Computer keyboards Computer monitors Cortisone Crayons Credit cards Curtains Dashboards Denture adhesives Dentures Deodorant Detergent Dice Dishwashing liquid Dog collars Drinking cups Dyes Electric blankets Electrical tape Enamel Epoxy paint Eyeglasses Fan belts Faucet washers Fertilizers Fishing boots Fishing lures Floor wax Food preservatives Footballs Fuel tanks Glue Glycerin Golf bags Golf balls Guitar strings Hair coloring Hair curlers Hand lotion Hearing aids Heart valves House paint Hula hoops Ice buckets Ice chests Ice cube trays Ink Insect repellent Insecticides Insulation iPad/iPhone Kayaks Laptops Life jackets Light-weight aircraft Lipstick Loudspeakers Lubricants Luggage Model cars Mops Motorcycle helmets Movie film Nail polish Noise insulation Nylon rope Oil filters Packaging Paint brushes Paint roller Pajamas Panty hose Parachutes Perfumes Permanent press Petroleum jelly Pharmaceuticals Pillow filling Plastic toys Plastics Plywood adhesive Propane Purses Putty Refrigerants Refrigerator linings Roller skate wheels Roofing Rubber cement Rubbing alcohol Safety glasses Shampoo Shaving cream Shoe polish Shoes/sandals Shower curtains Skateboards Skis Soap dishes Soft contact lenses Solar panels Solvents Spacesuits Sports car bodies Sunglasses Surf boards Swimming pools Synthetic rubber Telephones Tennis rackets Tents Tires Tool boxes Tool racks Toothbrushes Toothpaste Transparent tape Trash bags Truck and automobile parts Tubing TV cabinets Umbrellas Unbreakable dishes Upholstery Vaporizers Vinyl flooring Vitamin capsules Water pipes Wind turbine blades Yarn
And a comment from a friend who had to take a child to the ER- “ER visit with a child last week. I just looked at all the tubing, barf bags, oxygen regulators, gloves, bandages, furniture and fixtures in the room and tried to imagine the hospital going back to glass, leather, metal and wood for everything. Not to mention the computers and sensors. Casts would go back to plaster-only.” And this was JUST in the ER. Add in syringes, IV bags, medication, etc…
Hopefully, the idjits in charge actually do a ‘bit’ of research before they continue down this particular path!
How much time do you, as a writer put in on the various ‘skills’ necessary to get your book/story written? How much is your time worth? $10/hr, $50/hr, or???
How many books on ‘how to write’ (insert genre here) have you purchased and do you follow them?
How many hours do you spend in research? Do you go down ratholes? Do you use research to ‘verify’ something you put in the story, or do you do the research first, THEN write the story? Internet, actual books, or for research, or some combination of all three? Do you take road trips to visit locations (if you’re writing based on actual places)?
Do you have a schedule and stick to it? Write daily? Have more than one project going at a time? How do you handle writer’s block?
Outliner or pantser (you write the story as it develops in your head/characters)? Do you ‘argue’ with your characters?
Do you write the entire story first then edit, or do you edit the previous day’s output before writing the next day’s word count? Or some other variation (edit by chapters)? Do you self edit or pay an editor?
Who roofpreads your work? Spouse/SO/family? Asshole alpha and beta readers? Nobody except yourself? Are you a member of a writers or critique group?
Do you do your own covers/blurbs/keywords? How long does that take you? Or do you pay someone to do that?
Do you attend conferences? What tracks do you attend/follow at conferences? How do you ‘justify’ those costs?
How much marketing do you do? FB, blogs, newsletters, Twit, Instagram, other? Do you have business cards, bookmarks, or other swag to give away?
If you’ve made it this far, make a list of how you write, do all those other things, and track the hours you spend on each for something like a week. Now multiply that by how much each hour of your time is worth.
That will give you options if you’re spending too much time on specific tasks (specifically covers and editing). Remember, any hours not writing/researching may not be the ‘best’ use of your time.
Are there a set of answers? NO,THERE ARE NOT! Now that I’ve confused the hell out of you, the real answer is we are all different. Each of us has different ways of doing all those things (or not as the case may be). As a writer, you have to do what works best for YOU! Advice, self help books, etc. are all well and good, but YOU have to develop your own ‘style’ if you will.
This one IS one that has an answer- Can you/do you write to deadlines and word counts if you’re involved in an anthology?
If the answer is yes, then you will probably be invited back to other anthologies. If you can’t, or have to keep asking for extensions, you may not want to try for anthologies.
Failure to meet deadlines and word counts will give you a negative reputation among other authors/publishers/etc.
I seldom recommend stuff, but I WILL recommend the Writer Dojo, HERE. Larry and Steve cut through the BS, offer sound advice (you can take or leave it), and don’t pull any punches. I’ve followed them since they started it, and I have learned a number of very good things from these two guys!
YMMV, IANAL, etc…